


Lived In (A Home)

by Half_SubmergedinPurgatory



Series: TG Prompt Collection [30]
Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: Early Haise, Gen, Mama Akira, Mention of Child Abuse, Prompt Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-15
Updated: 2017-02-15
Packaged: 2018-09-24 16:51:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,421
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9771338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Half_SubmergedinPurgatory/pseuds/Half_SubmergedinPurgatory
Summary: ANONYMOUS:Fluffy prompt: Akira teaches Haise how to cook((Summary: Akira wonders if she’s managed to be a mother figure to Haise, worries about his personhood, and eventually forces him to cook.))





	

Meeting Haise Sasaki for the first time was…awkward. He didn’t really act like an adult and Akira avoided children as a rule ( _she’d been told time and again that she was cold_ ). Though his naivety wasn’t exactly distasteful, it was confusing ( _and uncomfortably endearing_ ).   
  
He was a murderer and a ghoul. How was she supposed to mother him?  
  
Still, Akira never truly backed down from a challenge. After training Haise in combat, showing him the ropes on the field, and trying to make him look presentable ( _Arima let him wander around in these ugly sweaters that she couldn’t stand…though there was the pink one with the kittens…_ ), Akira finally felt like she was succeeding. Haise trusted both her and Arima.   
  
It took her about a week to realize ‘trusting her like he trusted Arima’ was about as far from a familial bond as they could get. Embarrassingly, she didn’t realize her failing on her own. No, instead it came to light in the transcript of Haise’s latest failed mission.  
  
‘Talking to ghouls’ was his most cited offence. The CCG always kept a recorder on him, always trying to see if he would ( _remember? Become a person again? Stop being their tool - no, let it go_ ) go berserk. He’d been better lately ( _after she’d told him…she was disappointed in him_ ), so she was surprised to hear he’d broken protocol.   
  
Then she saw he had been talking to a child ( _damn it, Haise_ ).   
  
_[Sasaki Haise] ‘The CCG knows that you and your family are ghouls. Please peacefully surrender.’_  
  
Of course he would say that. ‘Peacefully surrender’ her ass.   
  
_[Sasaki Haise] ‘Where are your family members? Don’t try to trick me - I know their names and faces.’_  
  
Because of course a ghoul would willingly give that information away…she thought she’d taught Haise better than this.   
  
_[#114] ‘They’re dead. I don’t…I don’t have a reason to fight you. I’ll go.’_  
  
_[Sasaki Haise] ‘Wha- that can’t be true. Our intel has them here yesterday and there wasn’t a raid pla-’_  
  
_[#114] ‘Investigators came and killed them. They hid me in the basement but…there’s no food in there. I can’t hunt anyway. I’m…’_  
  
_[Sasaki Haise to xxx] ‘What is the meaning of this? Why would you send me out for a-’_  
  
_[xxx to Sasaki Haise] ‘They are a chimera. Besides, other ghouls could be hiding out nearby. This is clearly a nest-’_  
  
_[Sasaki Haise to xxx] ‘A nest???? This is a_ **home** _, sir.’_  
  
Akira sighed and pinched her nose. She had told him countless times to watch his mouth. She hated ( _seeing him hurt_ ) getting scolded about it.   
  
_[Sasaki Haise to xxx] ‘Why is his chimera status important? He’s too young to-’_  
  
_[#114] ‘You’re not my mom. Why do you care? You’re just going to kill me.’_  
  
_[Sasaki Haise] ‘I’m not going to hurt you! You’re - he’s just a child! Hey, STOP!’_  
  
_[xxx to Sasaki Haise] ‘I’m ensuring he can’t use his kagune-’_  
  
_[#114] *coughing* ‘See, you’re all liars…’_  
  
_[Sasaki Haise] ‘No, stop! That’s too much suppressant - even I can’t breathe! Hey!’_

 _[xxx to Sasaki Haise] ‘Honestly, if you want to be a mother so bad, go shack up with some ghoul, you filth. Stop adopting street rats and do your job.’_  
  
An unexpected stab of anger hit Akira hard. Everyone knew Haise had an issue with unnecessary force ( _she’d interfered countless times, had meetings, had chewed out an entire squad…_ ). Were they trying to set him off? Was it because she wasn’t there?  
  
_[#114] *screaming*_  
  
_[Sasaki Haise] ‘STOP IT! LEAVE HIM ALONE!’_  
  
_*Sasaki Haise appears to be losing control in this moment. He attacks xxx and refers to #114 as ‘Hinami’*_  
  
_[#114] ‘You’re crazy.’_  
  
_[Sasaki Haise] ‘This…is wrong. It’s wrong. Your mother wanted you to live.’_  
  
_[#114] ‘You don’t know that. You’re crazy!’_  
  
_[Sasaki Haise] ‘She was trying to say it when she died…she tried to say ‘live’.’_  
  
_[#114] ‘She never told me to live! She left me and then she died!’_  
  
_[Sasaki Haise] ‘In the rain…no…the basement, in the basement, yes. She hid you, she shielded you, and your father shielded you, too. Live. Go!’_  
  
_[#114] ‘Mom…dad…’_  
  
_[Sasaki Haise] ‘G-’_  
  
_**Sasaki Haise subdued. #114 collected for examination.**_  
  
Akira closed her eyes, trying to ignore the burn of tears behind her eyelids. Had someone told Haise to live…before he was Haise?  
  
Had she?

* * *

“Haise.”  
  
Akira greeted her student ( _son?_ ) as she stepped into his small apartment. He blinked at her blearily, clearing having slept on the couch, and seemed confused at her presence.   
  
“Did the CCG change the terms of my punishment…?”  
  
He asked hesitantly ( _Akira twitched, a guilty feeling welling up inside of her_ ).   
  
“No,”  
  
She responded quickly, trying to reassure him but not knowing how,   
  
“No, I came to see if you were taking care of yourself.”  
  
She winced. That was…extremely out of character ( _was it, though? Hadn’t she wanted to do exactly this-_ ). Akira forced herself to look at Haise, refusing to admit weakness, and was shocked to find his eyes sparkling with delight.   
  
“I…”  
  
He started, leaping up from the couch,  
  
“I…I’ve been cleaning! And uh,”  
  
He glanced down at himself,  
  
“Working out? I try to keep everything here neat and in shape uh, just…uh, just like you told me to.”  
  
The smile that had been building on his face wavered a little,  
  
“Is it good?”  
  
He asked. Akira let herself take in his tremulous smile, the nervous ( _excited?_ ) twitch of his hands, and his rumpled state. She let herself think about what Haise needed. What would be good for him…  
  
“We’ll see.”   
  
She replied, snapping on a set of white gloves. Time to see if her ward REALLY knew how to take care of himself ( _she let herself enjoy it, just a little, when Haise gulped_ ). 

* * *

The apartment was…extremely clean. Almost like no one lived in it. Akira was almost disappointed ( _almost proud, too_ ).   
  
“Your fridge is empty.”  
  
She observed, staring accusingly at Haise.  
  
“How are you supposed to stay in good form if you don’t eat?”  
  
She was nitpicking, but it bothered her. An empty fridge just solidified her impression that no one lived in this place.   
  
“The CCG sends me drinks…”  
  
Haise mumbled, shifting his gaze to the floor. Akira ignored his response and pulled open his cupboards, staring at all his unused dishes. She turned on her heel and gazed at the unused stove, the unused fridge, and all the bottles that had been thoroughly washed in the recycling bin…  
  
“I’m going to teach you how to cook.”

* * *

Teaching Haise how to make a human meal was…difficult. He couldn’t taste them and his sense of smell wouldn’t tell him much more than if the food was burnt or not. Still, after doing the same dish dozens of times ( _and eating enough of it to make herself sick_ ), Haise could at least tell what proper textures were.   
  
Akira went home for the night oddly satisfied by the sight of Haise’s messy kitchen, packages of rice strewn throughout his garbage can, his fridge full of semi-successful meals…  
  
It became a habit.   
  
It was…soothing ( _or just better in some intangible way_ ) to see dishes in the sink. Flour in Haise’s hair. A twist of disgust on his face as he chewed some passable mochi.   
  
Before she knew it, she was going home every night to pages of research on how to make a better cake…how to enhance the flavours of tea in pastries, how to perfectly sear meat, how to find the best fresh vegetables.   
  
Before she knew it, Haise could tell how most foods were meant to be prepared by sight and touch alone. He was better than her at it, actually.   
  
Before she knew it, Haise’s home-cooked meals sat on her desk every day at lunch.  
  
She wasn’t sure if she had managed to be the mother he always wanted. She wasn’t sure if she’d managed to be motherly at all. But Haise had certainly learned a thing or two…  
  
And she liked to think he’d learned it from her.  
  
( _Her lunches contained well-wishes. Protein for days of hard exercise, fish for when she had to think, a cake for the times that she was sad…_ )  
  
( _Had she done that for him?_ )  
  
( _Had she done things differently for him?_ )  
  
( _Had she considered his feelings?_ )  
  
( _The smile on Haise’s face…the brightness of the Chateau he moved into…the delicate hand he used on the Qs…they all told her yes_ )

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt me at my tumblr through purgatoryandme.tumblr.com/ask/ 
> 
> Read previously answered prompts through purgatoryandme.tumblr.com/drabbles/


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